Driving apparatus.



R.YP. CHAMPNEY.

DRIVING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION'FILED DEC. 15. 1914.

Pamented Jan.8,1918.

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Witnesses. Inventor. Ralph F? Charnpney,

m%m&Mmhmf R. P. CHAMPNEY.

DRIVING AP ARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED DEC. 15, 1914.

1,252,550. A Patented Jan. 8,1918.

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Ll I 6 \l 7 A I 3,4 9 |& 4 4 4 2. LH/ 2 A A Y A I a 2 F 2 Witnesses. 38 lnven'for. WWW 37 Ralph P Champney byfmd WkW Maw/ W Anya pnnnnsrnnn rnrrannf RALPH I. GHAMPNI ZY, OF WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS.

- DRIVING APPARATUS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented J an. 8, 1918 Application filed December 15, 1914. Serial No. 877,436.

machines in a mill or factory individually from motors, among which may be mentioned the elimination of overhead countershafts and belt transmission from such shafts to the machines; the ability to place any ma chine in any desired location without reference to lines of shafting; and the ease with which diflerent individual machines may be operated.

The cost of equipping each machine in a factory with its individual motor for operat- 1 ing it is, however, so great that in many instances it will oifset the advantages gained thereby. The cost of producinga motor capable of driving two, three or four machines in an ordinary factory is not much greater than that of producing a motor capable of driving a sin le machine only, and, therefore, the cost 0% equipping a factory or mill with a motor drive for the various machines therein can be greatly reduced if it is possible to provide or operating a small group of machines from thesame motor. i

It is the object of my invention to provide a novel self-contained motor drive apparatus which is especially designed to opcrate such a small group of machines, which can be readily connected to the various machines of the group without the use of overhead shafting, and which can be produced at a comparatively low cost, thereby making it possible to equip a factory with a motor drive for the various machines without an undue expenditure.

In the illustrated embodiments of my invention I have shown a motor drive designed to operate a grou of either two or four machines which w lbe placed 110M each other with their driving ends adjacent or near each other, but the invention is not limited in its use to operating any particular number of machines. The self-contained motor drive herein shown comprises a motor and suitable driving connections between the motor and each of the machines to be operated, the motor and driving connections constituting a unitary device capable of being transported and placed in any desired location. In the preferred embodiment of my invention the driving connection for each machine is constructed to permit of aspeed regulation thereby providing for varying the speed of operatlon of the machine.

Inorder to give'anunderstanding of my invention I have shown in the drawings some selected embodiments thereof which' will now be described, after which the novel features will be pointed out in the appended claims.

Figure 1 shows in elevation my improved driving apparatus connected to and operat- 7 ing two adjacent machines;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of Fig. 1 Fig. 3 isa side view of the motor drive apparatus; V

Fig. 4 shows one form of belt pulley that may be employed on the countershaft;

Fig. 5 is a section on the line ww, Fig. 4; Fig. 6 is a diagram view showing a possible layout for a factory in which the machines are driven by my improved motor drive;

Fig. 7 is a. view showing a motor drive adapted to operate a group of four machines;

Fig. 8 illustratesanother embodiment of the invention.

shaft 3 by w ich it is driven and with a A driving pulley'4 by which the shaft 3 is ope'rated, a clutch 5 of some suitable description preferably being interposed between the pulley and shaft. In order to drive these two machines from a 'single motor,-I propose to arrange the machines with the d i i g ends adjacent or near each other and to. place my selfcontained motor drive between the adjacent driving ends of the two machines. This motor drive comprises a motor 6 of suitable construction which is herein shown as mounted on abase 7 that is preferably of a size to be placed between the machines 1 and 2, and a driving connection between said motor and the driving pulley 4 of each machine. In the construction shown in Figs. 1 to 6, the base 7 has rising therefrom, and if desired cast integral therewith, bearings 8 in which is rotatably mounted a count-ershaft 9, the latter being geared to the armature shaft 10 by suitable gearing 11 and 12. This gearing 11 and 12 is in the nature of reducing gearing so that the shaft 9 will rotate considerably slower than the motor shaft. A driving connection is provided between the countershaft 9 and each of the driving pulleys 4, and while any suitable connection such, for instance, as ordinary belts or sprocket wheels and chains may be employed, I will preferably use an adjustable driving connection which permits of a change in the relative speed between the shafts 9 and 3. The adjustable driving connection herein shown comprises a belt 13 of the so-called V type, the shaft 9 having thereon two driving pulleys 14 having a V- .shaped groove to fit the belt 13, and the pulleys 4 being also similarly provided with the V-groove to fit the belt. In making the pulleys 14, I propose to employ a construction by which the effective diameter of the pulley can be varied thereby to provide for speed regulation.- As shown in Fig. 4, the pulley 14 comprises two members 15 and 16, the adjacent faces of which are provided with the inclined belt-receiving surfaces 17 and 18 against which the bevel faces 19 and 20 of the belt 13 have engagement. Thesemembers are capable of adjustment toward and from each other which provides means by which the effective size of the pulley can be varied. In the illustrated embodiment of the invention the member 15 is made fast to the shaft 9, and the member 16 is adjustable longitudinally thereof, said member being screw-threaded to the shaft and held in adjusted position thereon by a locking nut 21.

When the members 15 and 16 are adjusted toward each other, the belt 13 will be forced toward the periphery of the pulley and thus the effective diameter of the pulley will be enlarged, while if the members 15 and 16 are adjusted away from each other the belt 13 Will assume a position nearer the center of the pulley and the effective diameter of the pulley will thus be smaller.

The advantage of this construction is that it provides for maintaining the operation of the machines at their proper speed even though the voltage of the current operating the motor varies somewhat from that for which the motor is designed. It may frequently happen that when a motor drive of this character is installed in a factory the current which is supplied is found to be of a different voltage than that for which the motor was designed, in which case the motor will run at a different speed than that contemplated with the consequent variance in the speed of operation of the machine. If this condition exists it is possible to vary the effective size of the driving pulley 14 by adjusting the members 15 and 16 either toward or from each other and thereby vary the speed of the shaft 15 relative to that of the motor so as to give the machine the desired speed. This speed adjustment is also of advantage in that it enables a machine to be speeded up slightly without loss of power through the controller or other device.

In the above-described embodiments of my invention the motor shaft is geared to a countershaft from which the machine is driven. This arrangement has the advantage that the gearing may be in the nature of reducing gearing. In case the machine is to be run at a very high speed, it may be possible to connect the driving shaft of the machine directly to the motor shaft instead of using a countershaft and reducing gearing. In Fig. 8 I have shown an embodiment of this type wherein 1 and 2 indicate the two machines to be operated, each having a driving shaft34 thereon provided with a driving pulley 35 which is belted directly to a pulley 36 on the shaft 37 of the motor 6 by means of suitable belting 38. \Vith this arrangement. the two pulleys 36 will be placed apparatus arranged between each pair of machines in two adjacent rows. The space between the rows 1) and 0 is free from driving mechanism and will constitute an alley for the passage of operatives, etc. In Fig. 7 I have shown an embodiment of the invention in which the motor is adapted for driving a group of four machines 40. This embodiment is similar to that shown in the other figures with the exception that the base 7 is provided with two countershafts 9, one each side of the motor, each countershaft having two pulleys 14 thereon. With this arrangement a group of four machines can be placed with their driving ends adjacent and the driving apparatus located between the machines, as shown in Fig. 7, two of the machines being belted to one of the shafts 9 and two to the other shaft 9.

In all the embodiments of my invention the driving element is a self-contained unitary element in that it contains within itself the power element and the driving connections between the same and the machine. Moreover, this driving element is a portable element and can be readily transported from one place to another and can, therefore, be placed in any desired position in the factory. The element will also preferably be adjustably secured in place on the floor of the factory so that it can be adjusted slightly to keep the belts under proper tension. In the preferred embodiment of my invention this self-contained portable driving element also embodies speed-changing means by which the. speed of the driven shaft relative to the driving element may be varied.

It will be noted that the pulleys on the shaft 9 are of considerable size. The advantage of this is that the two side members 14 and 15 of the pulleys are of sufficient weight so that they have somewhat the function of a fly-wheel. These comparativelyheavy pulleys are thus of assistance in car rying the driven machine over the point of peak load without retarding the motor appreciably.

IVhile I have herein illustrated some selected embodiments of my invention, I do not wish to be limited to the constructional features shown.

I claim:

1. In a driving apparatus, the combination with two machines to be driven situated in line with each other and arranged with their driving ends adjacent each other, of a self-contained driving element therefor comprising a base separate from said machines and placed between them in line therewith, a motor on the base, a countershaft geared to the motor, two hearings on the base for supporting the countershaft, a ulley on each end of the countershaft ad acent the bearing, each pulley presenting a V-shaped belt-receiving groove and comprising two side members adjustable toward and from each other to vary the effective size of the pulley, a driving pulley on each machine, a V-belt connecting each pulley on the countershaft with a driving pulley on one of the machines, and means for adjusting independently the effective size of each pulley on the countershaft.

2. The combination with two machines to be driven situated in line with each other and arranged with their driving ends adjacent each other, each machine having a driving pulley with a V-shaped groove, of a v near each other, of a self-contained driving element therefor which is independent from the machines and which comprises a motor, a countershaft geared to the motor, means for supporting the countershaft and motor in fixed relation to each other, two pulleys on said countershaft, each presenting a V- shaped belt-receiving groove and comprising two side members adjustable toward and from each other to vary the effective size of said pulley, a driving pulley on each machine, a V-belt connecting each pulley on the counter-shaft with a driving pulley, and means for adjusting each pulley on the countershaft independently.

4. In a driving apparatus, the combination with two machines to be driven arranged with their driving ends adjacent or near each other, of a self-contained driving element therefor which is independent from the machine and which comprises a motor, a countershaft geared to' the motor, two V pulleys on the countershaft, and belting connecting each pulley to one of the machines, said pulleys being of considerable size and operating with a fly-wheel effect to assist in carrying the machine past the peak load.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification, in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

MAUDE B. GUPTILL, THOMAS J. DRUMMOND. 

